Hope Springs Eternal
by whimsical-one2007
Summary: Jess and Leslie are in their last year of High school. They have fears about what college will be like. What do they do when it comes? Jesslie LDD
1. Friday

**DISCLAMER: I dont own Bridge to Terabithia. I do, however, own an Xbox 360. Yay me.**

Jess Aarons was bored. It was halfway through Calculus 101, which Leslie had pressganged him into taking, and there were still 40 minutes till the end of the day.

"And so, the pi of the Q R squared is equal to the sum of the quadrilateral, also known as blah blah blah, monotonous blah."

Jess looked at Leslie's sheet, and it was jam packed full of notes for the test next week. He looked at his own.

It was full of notes all right...notes that he would nudge Les and tell her to read, stuff like "Terabithia after school?" and "yawn".

Little crappy words that you would expect to find in a final-year high school student's notebook.

The bell rang at the end of class, and Jess jumped up to be the first one out. He gathered his bag and books, and waited at the door for Leslie.

She walked up to him 5 minutes later, and he intertwined his fingers with hers.

They walked home like this, same as every day.

When they got to Terabithia, PT was waiting in the castle for them. They both stooped, and went inside.

"Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"You think we should make the castle bigger? And, like, put in like a solar powered mini generator so we can put a light in it?"

"S'up to you...I don't mind."

She looked at him with "The Look" which said "Go get lumber and tools".

He sighed, and complied.

Half an hour later, he was back with a wheelbarrow full of 2X4s, and his dad's toolbelt 'round his waist.

"Right," he said, "let's get started."

_**Insert 70's building montage here...**_

That night, as Leslie picked up the lantern, she made a mental note to pick up more Oreos and apples before coming tomorrow.

She and Jess made their way back to Jess's house, where she had been invited to sleep over that night. Thank God It was Friday.

"Good evening guys." called Jess's mom, as they sprinted up the stairs. Brenda and Ellie had long since gone to college, so he and Les had the room to themselves.

Jess climbed under his covers, and patted the spot next to him. Leslie smiled. She lay down next to him, and rested her head on his chest. PT jumped up too, and wriggled himself in between them, as if to say "MY Leslie, leave her alone..."

They discussed where they could find a solar generator, and decided to ask Jack in the morning.

He poked her in the side. She giggled. He poked her again. Now he could tell she was trying not to laugh. He knew she was ticklish there. He poked her a third time, and she kicked him.

He stopped poking her, and drifted off to sleep.

--

**_That bit at the top that his teacher says, that's pure gibberish. Don't try to make sense of it. It's something my math teacher was talking about. We were talking about pi, then suddenly he's like "blah blah blah quadrilateral blah pi blah q r squared". So I wrote down what I understood. As you can imagine, I failed the math test that week._**


	2. Hope Springs

**Nope...still don't own BtT**

Jess opened his eyes, and looked over at his alarm clock. He yawned. He turned to look at Leslie, who was looking at him.

"Morning beautiful."

She gently pressed her lips against his.

He smiled. "I'll just take that as "Good Morning.""

They got up out of bed, and trudged downstairs fro breakfast.

"'Morning" said his dad, without even looking up from the newspaper.

"Morning Dad"

"Morning Mr. Aarons."

"Dad," said Jess, "where do you think we'd be able to find a small solar generator?"

"What for?"

"For our treehouse. We want to put a light in it so if we ever get snowed in while we're in it, we can at least see."

Jack pondered this for a second, and Jess could tell by the movement of his lips that he was going through the inventory at the hardware store.

"Yeah, I think there's one at the hardware store."

"How much?"

"There's one that could run three strings of your mom's christmas lights for 20"

Jess looked at Leslie, and read the excitement on her face. They both hard part-time jobs, and each had well over 200 saved up.

"We'll take 3!" they both said, simultaneously.

"Come by the store later, and I'll have them waiting."

--

Jess and Leslie ran out to Terabithia to celebrate the good news. Instead of trying to wire up the lights right away, they decided to explore Terabithia a bit more. They found a spring not too far from the treehouse. Jess got an idea of what to call it.

A little while later, Leslie left to get more Oreos and apples, leaving Jess to do his work. He got two of the remaining pieces from yesterday's contruction, and nailed them together. He painted two words on them, and stuck it in the ground near the spring.

He sprinted off the the hardware store to get the generators.

An hour later, as Jess was rigging up the generators under a roof so they wouldn't get wet, Leslie returned with a horrified expression on her face.

"What is it?" asked Jess.

"Prom is next week. We don't have dates."

Jess looked at Leslie.

"What?" she looked around. "Did I say something?"

Jess counted down in his head. _5...4...3...2...1..._

She looked at Jess

"Will you go to Prom with me?" she asked him.

"Of course I will" he replied, with a laugh.

He handed her a plug.

"What's this?" she asked, as if she didn't want to know.

He sighed. "Just plug it into the generator..."

She plugged it in, and lights came on over the bridge, in the treehouse, and in the surrounding areas.

"Oh my god!! Jess, did you rig this all up?"

"Naw...I had help...The Terabithians let me drink from their spring."

He led her down to the spring they had found earlier.

"Read the sign"

"_**Hope Springs  
May nothing crush this site**_"

She began to cry tears of joy. With PT as their witness, they lay down in the treehouse, and fell asleep in each other's arms.

--

**_Awww...cuteness_**

**_At least 10 reviews, on ye shalt have no more chapteres_**

**_mwahahahaha_**

**_-whim_**


	3. Prom Night Part 1

**OMG! I just bought BtT!!**

**Nah, just jokin. I'm still just a fanfic writer**

As Prom Night drew closer, Jess and Leslie began to spend more time together than ever. It had dawned on the two of them that Prom would be their first _official _night out together.

When it arroved, Leslie was furiously adding layer upon layer of make-up, as her mom walked in the door.

"Leslie, sweetie, what ARE you doing?"

"I'm trying to make myself look beautiful, for Jess."

"Honey, you don't need all that makeup. Jess loves you just the way you are. Whether it's the Leslie that everyone calls a hippie, or the Leslie in the Prom dress tonight."

Leslie smiled. She could always rely on her mom to make her feel better. After that talking-to from her mom, she felt prettier than ever, and her happiness was practically radiating off her.

--

Jess stood under Leslie's window. He threw a rock up, and her an "Ow!" from her room. He silently cursed himself, and made a note to work on his aim.

Leslie stuck her head out the window, and sprinted downstairs.

She met him outside, and he looked stunned when he saw her dress.

"You look..." _Radiant, amazing, pretty, hot, sexy, beautiful?_ "...amazing."

She smiled. "I kept one thing for you."

He cocked his head in wonderment.

She lifted the bottom of her dress, and he saw that she still had on her trademark shoes.

Same old Leslie.

"You don't look too bad yourself." she said, in an effort to draw his eyes off her.

He had on a simple black dress shirt with his sleeves rolled neatly to his elbow, a silver vest, black pants, and black what appeared to be dress shoes.

"I didn't know you had dress shoes that still fit you."

He took her hand and they began walking down the street.

"Ah...the wonders of a pair of sneakers and black spray paint." he said.

She giggled.

"So, how are we getting to school?"

He pointed at a horse-drawn carriage at the end of the street.

"Courtesy of Old Man Mullborough."

"'Evening Jesse. All set?" asked the aged old farmer.

Jess nodded, and the carriage set off towards Lark Creek High.

--

**_Shortest chappie yet. I kow i said ten reviews, but I was listening to some songs, and I wanted to get them in ASAP in case I forgot them._**

**_PN PT2 will be up either tomorrow, or later tonight._**


	4. Prom Night Part 2

_**THIS CHAPPIE CONTAINS LANGUAGE!! I'M UPPING THE RATING TO "T"**_

_**IF IT'S ALREADY T, BUT YOU DON'T LIKE LANGUAGE, SKIP THE CHAPPIE**_

The carriage stopped outside of Lark Creek High, and Jess helped Leslie out.

They could already hear the music and the kids having fun, even from the other side of the building. She dropped her purse off at the coat-check desk, and they proceeded into the overly large gymnasium, which had been decked out to look like a rock concert.

It was only when Billie Joe Armstrong came out that they finally guessed why.

"All right guys! Well, congrats on your grad all of you, really. For all you couples out there, this is a song for you. And for guys who came stag and girls who came...I dunno...doe? Find a partner."

Jess and Leslie looked at each other and smiled.

"All right. This first one's called Extraordinary Girl."

She dragged him to the dance floor.

"_She's an Extraordinary girl  
In an ordinary world  
And she cant seem to get away_

_He lacks the courage in his mind  
Like a child left behind  
Like a pet left in the rain_

_She's all alone again  
Wiping the tears from her eyes  
Some days he feels like dying  
She gets so sick of crying_

_She sees the mirror of herself  
And image she wants to sell  
To anyone willing to buy_

_He steals the image in her kiss  
From her hearts apocalypse  
From the one called whatsername_

_She's all alone again  
Wiping the tears from her eyes  
Some days he feels like dying  
She gets so sick of crying_

_She's all alone again  
Wiping the tears from her eyes  
Some days he feels like dying  
Some days he's not worth trying  
Now that they're both up on it  
She gets so sick of crying_

_She's an Extraordinary girl  
An Extraordinary girl  
An Extraordinary girl  
An Extraordinary girl..."_

The song ended, and Jess gazed lovingly into her eyes, before leaning in, and joining their lips for a brief moment.

"Wow...first kissers of the night and we're not even a half an hour in. I think they can pick the next song."

"AMERICAN IDIOT!!" called Leslie.

"All right!! One of our favorites.

Here we go, just for these two.

_Don't wanna be an American idiot.  
Don't want a nation that under the new media.  
And can you hear the sound of hysteria?  
The subliminal mindfuck America._

_Welcome to a new kind of tension.  
All across the alien nation.  
Everything isn't meant to be okay.  
Television dreams of tomorrow.  
We're not the ones who're meant to follow.  
Convincing them to walk you._

_Well maybe I'm the faggot America.  
I'm not a part of a redneck agenda.  
Now everybody clear the propaganda.  
And sing along in the age of paranoia._

_Welcome to a new kind of tension.  
All across the alien nation.  
Everything isn't meant to be okay.  
Television dreams of tomorrow.  
We're not the ones who're meant to follow.  
Convincing them to walk you._

_Don't wanna be an American idiot.  
One nation controlled by the media.  
Information nation of hysteria.  
It's going out to idiot America._

_Welcome to a new kind of tension.  
All across the alien nation.  
Everything isn't meant to be okay.  
Television dreams of tomorrow.  
We're not the ones who're meant to follow.  
Convincing them to walk you._"

Leslie smiled in joy as her favorite song ended.

Later that night, as they were getting ready to go home, a song came on that drew our pair to the dance floor for the last time that night.

"  
_And dance  
Your final dance  
This is  
Your final chance  
To hold  
The one you love  
You know you've waited long enough_

_So believe that magic works  
Don't be afraid  
Of being hurt  
Don't let  
This magic die  
The answer's there  
Oh, just look in her eyes_

_And make  
Your final move  
Mmm, don't be scared  
She'll want you to  
Yeah, it's hard  
You must be brave  
Don't let this moment slip away_

_Believe that magic works  
Don't be afraid  
Afraid of being hurt  
No, don't let  
This magic die  
Oh, the answer's there  
Yeah, just look in her eyes_

_And don't believe that magic can die  
No, no, no, this magic can't die_

_So dance  
Your final dance  
'Cause this is  
Your final chance._ "

Leslie sighed, and rested her head on Jess's chest. For some reason, it just felt right.

--

_**I own none of these songs. Not even Magic Works. The first 2 are Green Day's, and Magic Works is Jarvis Cocker's. It was in Harry Potter GoF, when you see Ginny and Neville dancing together after Ron and Hermione fight.**_

_**R&R**_


	5. Just Friends?

Old Man Mullborough stopped the carriage outside Leslie's house. Jess got out first, and helped Leslie out. He walked her to her front door.

"Last chance for a good night kiss."

She put her hand on his cheek.

"You're a sweet man, Jesse Aarons."

And with that, she brought her lips to his.

The whole world seemed to stop for this young couple. As her hands ran through his hair, Jess deepend the kiss. They pulled apart only when they heard Leslie's dad calling her in.

"You should go."

She nodded.

"See you tomorrow at the ceremony."

As she walked inside, Jess stared after her, and his hand absent-mindedly traveled to his lips.

It was at that precise moment that Jess Aarons knew who he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

--

The following Saturday, Leslie woke up from a happy dream. she had dreamt that Jess asked her to marry him. Oh how she would be happy if that dream became a reality.

She walked downstairs for breakfast.

"Morning." said her dad, "Have a good time last night?"

"Oh yeah! Jess was so sweet. He helped me into the carriage,and helped me out of the carriage and--" she broke off because her parents looking at her.

"Sounds like someone has boy fever." said her mom.

Leslie faked a shocked expression. "Mom! How could you? Jess is and will always be _just_ my best friend."

--

Jess walked up the Burke's driveway. He wanted to ask Leslie out to a movie next weekend. What he heard broke his heart into a million little pieces.

"Mom! How could you? Jess is and will always be _just_ my best friend."

_JUST my best friend._

The four words stuck in him.

A single tear rolled down his cheek as he trudged home.

--

Later that afternoon, Leslie was getting worried. She hadn't heard from Jess all day.

She walked up to his front door, and rang the doorbell.

"Hi Mrs. Aarons. Is Jess in?"

"Yeah, he's up in his room. And please, call me Mary."

Leslie walked up the stairs, and knocked on Jess's door.

"Who is it?"

Leslie frowned.

"It's the PizzaMan. Who the hell do you think it is? It's your girlfriend."

Jess snorted.

"Yeah...right..."

"Who peed in your cornflakes this morning?"

"My best friend did."

Leslie instantly knew what he was talking about.

"You heard that? Listen, Jess. I was joking when I said that. I even faked a shocked expression to emphasize that I was joking."(AN: emphasize? correct my spelling if I'm wrong.)

Jess sighed.

"Prove it."

She moved her lips towards his, and embraced him in a deep passionate kiss. She felt his hands running up her back, and running through her hair.

When they _finally_ decided to come up for air, Leslie looked Jess square in the eye.

"Proof enough?"

Jess nodded.

"Ahum..." came a voice from the doorway.

They turned, and saw MayBelle standing in the doorway with a happy expression on her face.

"Oh the sheer horror of it all." Her expression went from happy to a horrified one.

"May, get out."

"No."

Jess turned to Leslie.

"Oh Leslie."

"Oh Jess."

"And I'm gone!"

--

_**Short chapter, I know. But I've been writing it for like a week, and I have terminal writer's block.**_

_**Also, about the emphasize. If I spelled it wrong, someone please correct me.**_

_**And for those of you looking for an update on Harry Potter Musical 2, I'm thinking of bringing the movie version of La Vie Boheme into it. Read it and lemme know, yeah?**_


	6. MayBelle's Major Mistake

_**Thank you to my noblest reviewers. Emily McDonald, G-Matt, and everyone else who reviews. You guys keep me writing.**_

_**This chapter is rated PG-14 for sexual themes in the after dinner section**_

_**--**_

MayBelle stalked out of the room, and threw herself onto the couch downstairs. She really liked Leslie. Leslie was good to Jess. But sometimes...ugh...they just...ugh!

MayBelle rolled her eyes. Leslie was cool, being the Queen and all. But what happens when she goes to college? Who's going to be Queen?

She shook her head. Such thoughts were below Terabithian Royalty.

Distinctly, she heard arguing.

"_You have to tell them"_

_"No! They'll just freak and make me go."_

_"So what? I'll go with you."_

_"I don't wanna drag you some place you won't like."_

Maybelle opened Jess's door just a crack, and pulled away, horrified.

Jess and Leslie didn't want to go to college!

--

Maybelle was shocked. Damn right her mom and dad would make Leslie go to college. She was, like, a star pupil.

She had to tell her mom.

"Mom, Mom!! JessandLesliedon'twannagotocollege."

"What? Who and what don't want to what?"

"Jess and Leslie do not want to go to college." she said, making sure to pronounce each word clearly.

"Well, that's their choice, not ours."

--

Jess sighed. He'd been trying for 2 hours to make Leslie understand that she should just ask her parents. The plan was, if Leslie ever decided to agree, that Leslie would ask to stay off the family vacation to go find an apartment with Jess.

"Look, Les. If you just ask them, they'll have to take that into account. You're 18 next month. You'll be old enough to make your own decisions. I'm sure they won't say no."

"It's not that simple. We've done this every year. It's tradition."

Just then, Jess's door burst open, and his dad came storming in.

"What's this I hear you're planning to skip college?"

"Dad--"

"ANSWER ME!"

"Dad, we're not. We're planning something opposite to skipping college."

His dad glared at him with narrowed eyes.

"I've got my eyes on you boy. You and that girl."

And with that, his dad left, and slammed the door.

Jess made a very rude gesture after his father, and Leslie burst into laughter.

Jess threw himself onto his bed, and hauled off his t-shirt.

"Damn...It's hot this summer."

Leslie lay down next to him, and began to trace curvy shapes on his abdomen.

"Yeah...very hot."

--

The following week, at the big Family Dinner, the only time of month when the Burkes and Aarons got together for dinner, Jess and Leslie announced their plans.

Leslie started.

"Mom, Dad. Jess and I have figured out what we're gonna do. I just wanna know if I can skip the family vacation and go look for an apartment with Jess, near Lark Creek University."

Bill and Judy pondered this for a second, before replying.

"Yes, you may."

Jess gave Leslie a look that said "Told Ya So"

MayBelle was stunned.

"But...wha-...huh? Leslie said they would freak and make you go. What were you guys talking about?"

"I was worried that my parents would be shocked at my wanting to skip family vacation this year, and they might make me go. That's what me and Jess were arguing about.

MayBelle sat there, dumbfounded at her own teenagedness. She had reacted to even the slightest bit of _potential_ gossip. Not gossip. _Potential_ gossip.

"Ya hit the gossip phase, didn't you?" asked Leslie.

MayBelle nodded.

"Yeah. I thought so. Believe me, it's only gonna get worse. Hell, I even gossiped about Jess with the cheerleader girls."

"Were these the ones calling you cave-girl, or the ones calling me a freak for sticking up for you?"

"Both."

Jess shook his head, and dug into his roast beef.

--

After dinner, Jess and Leslie went for a walk through Terabithia. They stopped at the spring, which had apparently developed a river down to the lake at the beginning of the creek.

"C'mon Jess, let's go for a swim."

Jess blinked.

"Wha--? We haven't any bathing suits."

Leslie smiled an evil smile as she pulled off her shirt.

Jess turned away.

"Oh come on Aarons. It's not like you're never gonna see it."

He gave in, and stripped off, running into the lake, and splashing water everywhere.

--

When Jess walked in the door, about an hour later, his mom was waiting for him. She opened her mouth to reprimand him for being late, saw his wet hair, and immediately knew where he'd been.

Jess went red, and sprinted to the shower.

--

_**Well all, I hope you enjoyed this rather...interesting chapter. As I said above, I'm not posting any more disclaimers. If you're at this point in the story, you've read 6 disclaimers, and if you still don't understand that I don't own anything in here, except the plotline, well...you belong with special people.**_

_**Reviews are always welcome. A reminder about HPM2, Movie Verison of La Vie Boheme? Yay or Nay?**_

_**Till next time,**_

_**WHIM**_


	7. Of Dreams, Apartments, and Classes

--

Jess lay back on his bed and sighed, reliving the events of the skinny-dipping. It felt so right, just swirling around in the water, kissing and groping with nothing but air, or in this case water, between them. Skin on skin.

He shook his head when his mind drifted to thoughts of what might have happened had they not decided to head home.

There would be time for that in a few weeks.

In a few weeks, they would share an apartment.

And in a few months...

He grinned as he developed his scheme.

--

Leslie wrapped the towel round her chest as she stepped out of the shower.She shivered.

_God, I hate the chill you get when you're just out._

_Jess would make it feel warm._

_Jess would make it feel good._

_Oh, the way he caressed my--_

She cut herself off mid-thought.

_Get a hold of yourself Leslie. You're not at that stage yet._

_Are we?_

_We've been best friends since 11, kissing since 15, groping since he turned 18._

She shook her head again, more to shake out the water than to rid herself of thoughts.

She sat on her bed, and pulled out her favorite photo album. She opened it, and lost herself in memory. There they were. Two carefree kids roaming through Terabithia, fighting off squogres and trolls, vultures, and Dark Master Slaves.

There they were again, a few years later. She had filled out. He had --wow-- grown muscles. He had a six pack then, and was the envy of all the guys. He had the girl, he was getting the car, and best of all-to them- he had the six-pack.

And then she came to her favorite picture. His 18th birthday party. He took some guys from the track and field team, and of course Leslie, and went paint-balling. Later, she had taken him to Terabithia where she had baked a cake just for the two of them.

The picture was them, asleep in each others arms. No doubt taken by MayBelle. She was always looking for an article for the school paper.

She fell asleep with the photo album in her arms. That night, she dreamt dreams of Mrs Jesse Oliver Aarons Jr.

--

He woke up the next morning from happy dreams. Dreams of what they would do to christen their new apartment.

He looked over at his clock.

_10:45!? The meeting's at 11:30!!_

He sprinted downstairs, jumped in his rusty old pickup truck, picked up Leslie, and drove as fast as he legally could downtown.

They arrived at the realtor's office at 11:25, having narrowly dodged traffic, and speeidng when cops weren't looking.

"Ah, you must be Mr. Aarons and Ms. Burke." said the realtor, a short chubby man who was in his 50s at least.

"Yes. Pleased to meet you Mr. Coté(coh-tay)."

"I have selected a few apartments that met your request. 2 bedrooms, a bathroom, a living room, and a kitchen. There is one right near here. we could walk if you like."

Jess sighed. It was going to be a long afternoon.

--

When they finally got home that night, Jess was exhausted.

_A few apartments my ass. He took us to at least 14._

_Still, at least we picked one._

_Finally, I'll have my own place to share with my girl._

_Advantage: Moving Day is next week_

_DisAdvantage: Class selection papers arrived today! Uh-Oh!_

Jess and Leslie sat on the front porch choosing their classes.

"I think I'll take Art, Physics, Drama, Calculus, and Trigonometry" said Leslie, checking off each class.

"I'm gonna take Track, Art, Drama, Calculus, Physics, and Trig." replied Jess.

Leslie smiled. She knew that being in the same apartment wouldn't be enough. They would have to take the same classes, eat at the same table, and sleep in the same bed.

She looked forward to it.

--

_**Okay, well, that was chapter 7. Keep an eye out for chapter 8: Moving Day. It won't be up before sunday.**_

_**Peace.**_


	8. Moving Day

_**I'm really sorry this wasn't up before today. I know a few people wanted it up yesterday coughemilycough. But I was getting ready for a hollywood red carpet themed banquet, and I didn't have anything to wear.**_

_**I ended up going "gangster style" as my girlfriend put it. With a burgundy shirt, a deep blue tie, black jeans, and black shoes with white trim.**_

_**CHAPTER CONTAINS SOME EXPLICIT THEMES AND LANGUAGE RATED PG-14**_

--

Jess looked around his room for the last official time, making sure he hadn't forgotten anything. This would be the last time he slept in this room, excluding when he came to visit on holidays. He looked the room up and down, seeing various places where major things had happened in his life. on the door next to him, he had cut his leg on a protruding nail, and so, there was the brown residue of blood. Over in the corner where his bed was, he had kept his first nudey magazine.

He sighed. Good times, good times.

He turned around, and left the room, walking down the stairs, and leaving the house. His dad was loading the last of the stuff into the back of his truck.

He walked over to his mom. She looked about ready to lose it as she looked up at her boy.

"I've been dreading this day for 18 years."

He hugged his mom.

"I love you mom."

And then, she lost it. His mom broke into tears as he pulled away, and went to say bye to his dad.

"Bye Dad."

His dad smiled, and hugged his son.

"Your nudey mag is in the box marked "Jess's items"." he whispered.

Jess turned a deep shade of red.

He hopped into the driver's seat of the truck, andwaited for Leslie to finish her goodbyes.

Bill Burke came up to his window.

"You take care of my Leslie. Don't let anything happen to her."

Jess nodded.

"Mr. Burke. Can I ask you something while it's just the two of us?"

"Sure Jess. What is it?"

Jess reached inside his jacket pocket, and pulled out a small box.

"Of course you can Jess."

Leslie hopped into the truck, and smiled.

"All set."

With one final wave, Jess started the engine, and pulled out of the driveway.

--

When they arrived at their apartment an hour later, Jess tried to gently wake up Leslie.

"Les...Leslie we're here."

"Mmh"

Jess sighed, and swooped her up bridal style.

He carried her upstairs into the apartment, and gently set her on the couch.

The couch?

The TV?

The bed?

There was a note sitting on the coffee table.

_Dear Jess,_

_We thought these might come in handy. _

_Take care of Leslie, and come visit us this weekend._

_Love,_

_Mom, Dad, Bill, and Judy_

Jess smiled as he went back downstairs to start unloading.

--

Leslie woke up, lying on a couch.

A couch?

She got up, and wandered into the bedroom.

A bed?

A flip TV?

Just then, Jess walked in the front door with Leslie's box of stuff.

"Sleeping Beauty's awake."

"I am. Need help?"

"Nah, that's the last of them."

Jess handed Leslie the note, as if he knew what she was thinking.

She read it, and then a look of understanding came to her face.

Jess unpacked his box, as Leslie made a cup of coffee.

He came upon a magazine entitled _Freshman College: How to Cope_.

He read the stiki attached.

_Jess, _

_You didn't think i'd let you have a nudey magazine, did you?_

_Come see me at Christmas, I'll give it to you._

_-Dad_

"Son of a BITCH." yelled Jess.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Leslie looked at Jess.

"Oh, all right. My dad told me that my first ever nude magazine was in here."

"The one that you stuck my head on all the models you dirty great perv?"

Jess nodded.

"You know, we're alone right now. I can do all your fantasies."

Jess smiled widely, and dragged her to the bed.

--

A little while later, Jess lay under the covers with Leslie's head rested on his chest.

He got up, and reached inside his jacket pocket.

He pulled out the box, and got down on one knee in front of Leslie.

"Jess?"

"Leslie, we've known each other for 7 years. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Leslie Burke, will you marry me?"

--

_**Duh, Duh, Duhhh**_

_**What'll she say?**_

_**Find out next chapter.**_

_**R&R or there is no chapter, and you'll have to guess.**_


	9. The Calm Before The Storm, or Not?

_**This chappie was subjected to many days and hours and cans of Coke of re-writing. It was supposed to be diary format, looking back on freshman year, but I figured it would be to big of a time jump.**_

_**Sorry if I made you sad Emily!**_

_**--**_

_"Leslie Burke, will you marry me?"_

--

"No." she said, resolutely.

"No?"

"Yes."

"Oh my god! I love you so much!!"

"No..."

"No?"

"Damn it Jess, I won't marry you."

Jess wsayed on the spot, caught off guard by this...outburst.

"You won't?"

"No. I'm seeing Fulcher."

Jess swayed again.

"Y'what!?"

Leslie playfully punched him on the arm.

"Nah, I'm not seeing Vulcher. I just...want to wait until after freshman year. I dunno, it just seems kinda...weird. I mean, I just turned 18, and you'll be 19 in November. I want to wait until I'm 19 too."

Jess nodded, and got back into bed. She rested her head on his chest, and she drifted off to sleep. He, however, spent many hours twirling her hair around in his fingers, and staring at the ceiling, and daydreaming of Mrs Leslie Aarons.

_"So this is the perfect happy moment. I better not spoil it._

_Mr. Leslie Burke. _

_Damn"_

Jess sat up in bed, and Leslie shifted slightly under the covers.

"Wha--"

"Shh, go back to sleep."

He wandered into the hall to pick up the mail.

_Mr Jesse Aarons II, Miss Leslie Burke_

_The Professors of Lark Creek College would like to request that the two of you take the Creative Arts course, instead of trigonometry. Your families have contacted us, and have told us what vivid imaginations you have._

_Sincerely,_

_Dean Charles Warlic._

Jess made a mental note to ask May if she told the Dean anything. He put the letter on the table, under a coffee cup, where he was sure Leslie would find it, and went out for a walk.

--

Their apartment was at the perfect place. It was right on the waterfront, and had a little deck on the top where they could sit and watch boats going by at night. Jess walked along the grassy beachfront, thinking of where to take LEslie for her birthday dinner.

_A month later and you still haven't done something? What kind of douchebag boyfriend are you?_

_That's not true. I screamed her name when she giggied my google._

_That was TAKING something numbnuts._

Jess groaned as he lost this argument with himself. He passed by the fruit shop, and figuredhe better get some more apples. He picked out the freshest he could find, a nice mix of Gala, Granny Smith, and Yellow apples, and set off towards his next stop.

The grocery store.

Even though he was only going for Oreos, Jess knew he'd be leaving with chips, cookies, soda, and other assorted goodies for a classic teen lunch.

--

Leslie woke up to an empty bed. She wanderd drowsily into the kitchen for a cup of coffee, and spotted a note from Jess.

_Got hungry, went for apples and oreos. _

_Be back soon with tons of sugary goodness!!_

_-Jess_

Leslie sighed. The note was so typical Jess. Going out for 2 things, and having to call her to pick him up 'cause he bought so much.

She spotted a letter underneath where her coffee cup was.

She read it over twice, to make sure she wasn't dreaming, and was giddy with joy.

The front foor swung open, and in came Jess with 3 bags of food.

"Sugary goodness is home!"

Leslie ran at him as if to hug him, slipped her arms round him, and stole the Oreos from the bag behind him.

Jess rolled his eyes. She did that every time. And then she would sit and every time Jess went for an Oreo, she would smack his hand, and declare: "_**MY**_ Oreos"

He sat down on the couch next to her, and sighed. If this was what the apartment was like, what would college be like?

Jess's Logic: _I'm doomed. I barely passed highschool. This part has to be the calm before the storm._

Leslie's Logic: _This will be CAKE! I passed school with flying colors. This part is definitely the darkest before dawn._

_--_

_**Well, that was chapter 9. Again, I'm sorry if I made you sad Emily, but Leslie has a point.**_

_**Jess's birthday is in November in this fic, because mine is in November as well, and i just couldn't be bothered trying to fix a date. Anyone that can deduce my birthdate from my writing style will earn Kudos, and many cybertreats.**_


	10. The Accident

_**Thank you to the perosn who pointed out my 70's building montage error. This story was originally supposed to be a spoof script between me and my friends. I'll change that error posthaste.**_

_**Anyway, sorry for the long update, I had a big long thing typed for this chapter, then I watched a movie, and scrapped all 10 pages of it. I decided that everything's too holly-jolly, and there needs to be some form of an antagonist, so I put this chapter in. If you like this too much to see one of the most shocking moments I've ever written, STOP READING NOW.**_

_**Thank you,**_

Jess lay on the couch pondering the many mysteries of life. Why do human's fight, why do we die, what happens after we die, why, when some people are dying, do they have a feeling of underachievment?

He sat up, and shook his head.

_My time will come. I'll get answers before I know it._

The sound of a ringing phone woke Jess from his nap.

He picked up the reciever, and listened for a voice.

"Jesse?"

"Mom?"

"We need you to come home. There's been an accident."

"Wha--?"

"Please Jesse, just come home right away."

There was a dial tone, and Jess knew his mother had hung up.

He went into Leslie's room, and shook her.

"Les...Les wake up."

"Hmm?"

"Wake up..."

"Five more minutes mom."

He shook her harder.

"Who--hey!"

"Get some clothes on. We're going home."

--

Within 5 minutes, Jess and Leslie were in the truck and on the main road towards the highway.

"Why'd you wake me up Jess?"

"My mom called. She said there'd been an accident."

Jess looked over at Leslie, but she had already fallen back asleep.

--

Less than 30 minutes later, Jess was pulling onto his street.

He reached over and shook her awake.

"Jesse!"

He stopped the car mere inches from a police car.

He hopped out and ran inside.

"Mom! Mom, I'm here!"

He found his mom on the couch crying, a police officer standing across from her.

"What's going on?"

"Jesse there's been an accident. Your father's in a coma. They think he might not make it through the night."

Jess sank into the armchair, and looked at his feet.

"What happened?"

The policeman chose this point to talk.

"The details are sketchy at this point, and unless your father wakes up, its unlikely we'll ever find out. What we do know is that he was doing inventory, and the roof fell in on him. It's a miracle he's even still alive."

"I want to see him. If he's not going to make it through the night, I want to see him one last time."

The cop nodded.

--

Jess went back outside to his truck, and waited for the police officer to lead him to the hospital.

_What a strange night,_ he thought.

As the police car's lights flickered on, Jess had a sinking feeling that this would be the last time he would ever see his dad alive.

Leslie shook his arm.

"Jess? You're crying. What's happened?"

"Dad's in a coma. They think he might not make it till morning.We're going to see him now."

Leslie gasped in shock as the truck pulled out of the driveway, and back onto the street.

--

They arrived at the hospital rougly a half hour later. Jess hopped out, and looked at the building before him.

_God this place stinks of death._

He walked reluctantly towards the door, not knowing what awaited him on the other side. Once in the building, he felt a deep sorrow befall him, as if Death himself was lurking the halls.

He heard his mother speak.

"We're here to see Jack Aarons."

The receptionist typed a few things in the computer.

"I'm sorry miss, but the only Jack Aarons we have is in a coma."

"I know, but his son has come to see his father in case he doesn't make it till morning."

The receptionist nodded knowingly.

"Take the elevator to the third floor, follow the signs for the ICU. Once there, tell Nurse Jacklin who you're here to see."

Jess was first up to the elevator, and was pushing the buttons franticly, as if doing so would save his father's life. When the elevator finally dinged, he practically forced the door open, and went inside.

Once on the third floor, Jess's feeling of sorrow deepened.

"I don't like this place. It reeks of death."

Leslie squeezed his hand.

"I don't like it either, but we have to come through here."

They followed the signs towards the ICU up to a desk, where a short nurse with the name D. JACKLIN on her tag, was sitting.

"Can I help you?"

"We're here to see Jack Aarons. His son is here."

Jacklin nodded, and pointed at the door to her left.

Jess went inside, and could hardly recognize his dad. He was on a drip, and had oxygen tubes on his nose. His face was covered in bandages, and one arm looked as though it might fall off.

Jess sat in the chair next to the bed.

As he stared at his dad, he remembered something his dad had once told him.

"_I once knew a sailor who had fallen overboard. When they pull;ed him back onto the ship, he was dead. Then, he spluttered, and they were able to revive him. When I next saw him, he told me that while he was dead, he could see his passed loved ones all waving at him. He said it was like going home."_

Jess looked up at the nurse.

"Is there any way?"

She shrugged.

"He said the decision was yours. those were his exact words. "Jesse pulls the plug...please""

Jesse took one last look at his dad.

"Do it."

--

_**Wow...i didn't think he would do it. As i said before. There needed to be an antagonist.**_

_**Read and Review. The next chapter should be up soon.**_


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